Soaring Wings takes a starring turn in the Hollywood spotlight

For one day at Soaring Wings International Montessori School last week, tests, assignments and homework were replaced by three other words: "Lights, camera, action!"

On Wednesday, Oct. 7, the school’s playground was the set for the filming of acclaimed director Steven Soderbergh’s upcoming HBO film titled "Mosaic." Bruce King, administrator of the school, said 25 students and two teachers served as extras during the filming of the scene.

"I think it was probably a lot of work for (the extras)," King said. "Everybody else was just kind of watching from inside. We had a bunch of parents that were inside the school watching. There was a lot of excitement."

King said the school was first contacted last spring about serving as a location for the film and had since been in touch with representatives of the movie.

"I saw a guy out in the parking lot, taking pictures of our school," he said. "I went out to see what he was up to, and he said he was the location scout for this upcoming HBO movie. They had a scene with a playground, and he thought our building and our playground were beautiful. He took a bunch of pictures, showed them to the director, and one thing led to another."

Amid the excitement of the production, and the extras going in and out of the building shooting scenes, classes on Wednesday proceeded pretty much as normal, King said. The film crew was easy to work with and left the school’s administration open to the possibility of again hosting a movie production in the future.

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"We wanted to carry on regular classes inside," King said. "That worked out really well. I mean, those people are super nice and cooperative. We figured, ‘If this turns into a pain in the neck, we just won’t do it again.’ But if it’s just a minor inconvenience, we should welcome these people with open arms. They bring a lot of money into the county for everybody. Our experience was great and we’d probably do it again if we had the chance."

Details about the movie are scarce online. According to media reports, Sharon Stone will star, and rumors are swirling that it will feature an innovative narrative style. The movie is said to be a "choose-your-own-adventure," with several variations of the story being filmed and viewers at home choosing how it unfolds through an app.

The crew didn’t divulge much to King, but he’s hopeful the scene filmed at the school makes it into the final cut of the movie.

"I just hope we have at least a couple minutes in the film," King said. "It would be cool to see."